For the Love of Rogue
by Aeonstrife
Summary: Here you have it. The last chapter. Read it. I dare you. Tell me if you think I should write a sequel. I double dare you.
1. Default Chapter

The Torn One

The Torn One

Chapter One

'Yeah, it's a sad state of affairs, what with all this hate for mutants. But I say that there's a thing common to both mutants and humans.'

'And what's that?' asked the rugged Canadian.

'There are the good, the bad, and the ugly. Now, how about another round?'

'That would be nice,' said the man with red glasses.

'I'll just be outside,' said the young woman with a white streak in her hair as she rose from her stool and walked from the café. She breathed in the fresh Sydney air, and thanked Xavier for having the inspiration to send some of the X-men around the world.

Rogue, Logan, Scott, and Jean were the final group to have their 'vacation'. They were designated to search for mutants in Australia, and tonight was their last night in Australia. So far they had found nobody with the mutation in their body.

So it had been a holiday.

Rogue needed this. Her training had been intensive at the institute, and Xavier believed she deserved the break.

So did Rogue. She watched a teenage boy and his mother at an ATM across the street. They seemed to be happy about something. She thought they were discussing a movie. Rogue wished she could figure out who her parents were. She just had too many memories in her head to be able to figure them out.

Then she saw the group of men walking down the street. Maybe ten men. They all laughed loudly, almost cackling. The mother turned her head ever so slightly towards the group, but she continued to work at the ATM.

Rogue saw a glint of silver and she felt a feeling of dread in her stomach. She turned and jogged into the café. 'Uh, guys. We have a situation.'

'I'll check it out,' Logan growled.

Logan sculled the rest of his beer and cracked his knuckles. He stood and followed Rogue out to look on the scene. The boy stood defiantly beside his mother, who spoke calmly and peacefully to the group.

Logan thrust his hands in his pockets and strode across the empty road to the group of men.

'Is there a problem here?' he said non-chalantly.

'No problem at all,' said one of the men. Logan turned to the young man and his mother.

'Please don't get involved, sir,' said the woman. 'They only want my money.'

'I won't let them have it,' said Logan. 'Now, please go away,' he said, turning to the men.'

'Or what?' said one.

Logan chuckled. 'Or I'll make you.'

One of the men grabbed the mother roughly and held a knife to her throat.

'Let her go!' shouted the boy.

'Or what? You'll make me?'

'No, but if you hurt her I'll make the rest of your life a living hell.'

'I'd like to see that,' said the man.

And he stabbed the mother in the back. The boy's eyes widened in horror. He fell to his knees at his dying mother, and he held a hand to her wound.

'I'm sorry, mom. I'll see you in a couple of years,' he whispered through tears. A soft red light appeared between the wound and his hand.

The boy stood and faced the smiling murderer.

'You'll be sorry.'

Logan threw himself away from the boy as he thrust out his hands. A bright raging inferno erupted from his hands, and bathed the gang in flame. The fire dispersed, and the gang rolled around in agony, trying to put out the flames that burnt their skin and melted their clothes.

Logan looked up at the boy, who started intently at the flames. Scott, Jean and Rogue were beside Logan, Rogue helping him to his feet.

After what seemed like ages, the boy raised his hands to the screaming mob and the flames died out immediately.

'Now pigs, remember what your evil has done to you. And remember that I'll always be there to make sure you never do anything like this again.'

The boy knelt and picked up the body of his mother. He walked with her body to a nearby beach, the group of four in tow. He set her body down on the sand and took her money and keys from her. He then checked for a pulse on her body, hoping that she would still be alive. But no. She was dead.

Rogue walked up to him and put a gloved hand on his shoulder. He ignored the hand and waded into the water with his mother's body. He pushed the body out to sea, and set the body alight.

'Goodbye mother,' he said with a lump in his throat. He turned and walked back onto the beach.

'What will you do now?' Scott asked him.

'What do you care?'

'I care, believe me. What will you do?'

The boy shrugged. 'I don't know. I'll go to the outback, maybe work on a farm. I don't know.'

'We have a proposal to make, Joel,' said Jean, reading the boy's mind for his name. 'In New York there is an institute, where you can learn to control your powers.'

'And how do you propose we get to New York?' Joel snarled.

'We have a plane nearby.'

'Alright, I may as well. But I have to do one thing first.'

The five drove to his home in silence, except for the directions Joel gave. He unlocked the door to his house and stepped inside. He found a pen and pad, and began to write a note to his father. He placed the note on his father's pillow. Then he took a necklace his mother gave him for his birthday, putting it around his neck. He then walked from the house.

He turned and looked at it one more time, and he realized he would never see it again.

They drove to the blackbird and began the flight back to the institute.

Joel sat in a corner of the jet, and gazed at the necklace. He knew he should've worn it today. It had always seemed to protect him, and he thought that maybe his mother would still be alive if he'd worn it.

But he knew that joining the X - Men was the only thing he could do. He was a mutant. And in his community mutants were hated.

He knew that joining this group was the best thing he could do.

It would probably be a bit of fun too.

'So, how long have you had these powers?' He heard the voice and he snapped out of his daydream.

'Huh?'

'The powers. How long have you had them?' asked Rogue.

'Maybe ten years, I don't know.'

Rogue raised an eyebrow. 'And…how old are you?'

'Two days off fifteen.'

'Interesting…' Jean said, who was standing in the aisle, listening in.

'And why is that?' asked Joel.

'Well, the powers have only been known to manifest at puberty, and if you've had them for ten years, well, you would've been five years old only.'

'Yeah, well, my dad was a mutant so that probably explains it. He was one of the first.'

'Really? What powers did he have?'

'He was a psychic. He could foretell the future. But what I want to know is why I got these powers while he was a seer.'

'Well, the X-Factor is completely random. It would be possible that you might never have had the X-Factor. The ability the mutation gives you is anything imaginable.'

Joel nodded in understanding. There was an awkward silence, which was broken by Jean.

'Well, I'll just go and contact the professor. We'll be coming into land at the institute soon.'

Joel again nodded silently. He put the necklace around his neck and buried his face in his hands. Rogue, not knowing what to do, just replaced her gloved hand on his shoulder.

The blackbird slowly came to a halt above the institute. When it landed, Joel followed Rogue from the craft and into the mansion. Xavier was there to meet the five.

'Hello Mr. Hothe,' said Xavier.

Joel looked at Xavier suspiciously.

'Well, yes Joel, I do know you. The last time I saw you, you couldn't even stand on your own two feet!'

'How…' Joel stammered.

Xavier smiled. 'I used to work with your father. We were very good friends, and the last I heard of him he was in Sydney. My condolences for your loss. She was a wonderful woman.'

'Yeah, well, right now I just want to go to sleep, sorry for my rudeness.'

'No need to apologize. I have a room ready for you. I'll take you there myself.'

'Goodnight Joel,' said Rogue.

'Yeah, goodnight guys,' said Joel.

Joel and Xavier began to move off in the direction of Joel's room.

'Hey kid,' Logan shouted after him.

'Yeah?'

'…Sorry I got in the way.'

'Hey, don't lose any sleep over it,' Joel said without faltering in his step.

'Xavier?' Joel asked when he was out of Rogue's earshot.

'Hmm?'

'Why does Rogue wear those really long gloves? Is it the new American fashion?'

'She has the power to absorb another mutant's power's for a short time, as well as absorb their life energy. As of yet she can't control her power, so she wears the gloves to keep the others around her safe. She's a danger to all around her otherwise.'

'How tragic…'

'Well, here's your room. Toiletries etc. should be in there already. You can choose your subjects tomorrow if you want. I bid you goodnight.'

'Goodnight mate,' Joel said as he stepped into his room.


	2. Chapter 2

The Torn One

The Torn One

Chapter 2

'A plant cell, on the other hand, is much more complex. It is made up, like an animal cell…'

His first day of his new school, and Joel was already going to sleep.

Well, I guess she wouldn't mind if I just rested my eyes…

'Yes Joel, I would mind,' came a sharp voice, bringing him back to the classroom with a start.

'Sorry miss,' he mumbled beneath the giggles of the students. Such were the problems of a telepathic teacher.

'Don't let it happen again.'

Much to Joel's relief, the bell rang for the 6th and final period.

Sport. He was a natural at most sports, but he loved rugby. But he doubted they'd have the Aussie versions.

He'd watched the Gridiron game when it had come out to Australia, but it bored him to death.

He walked into the change rooms when it struck him.

'I left my clothes in Sydney!' he cried in anguish.

'Bad luck, Joel,' said a short Indian boy. 'I'd lend you some of my clothes, but I honestly don't think they'd fit you.'

'That's alright…what was your name?'

'Berath.'

'I'll just ask the professor if I could go and buy some.'

'Will he let you?'

'Sure he will! I mean, he made me feel like it was years ago that my m-'

'That your what?'

'Oh, nothing. I'll just go play sport in these clothes,' said Joel, who stood and realized he absolutely towered over Berath. He turned and walked out of the change rooms.

'No, seriously! That your what?'

'Hey Logan! How's it going?' shouted Joel at the new physical education coach.

'I'm going pretty well, Joel,' said Logan. 'Today we're going to play capture the flag, just to test your physical abilities.'

'Great!' said Joel, just pleased that they weren't playing gridiron.

Teams were chosen. There were three teams of ten, and Berath and Joel were chosen to be on the same team.

They all chose the place that their flag would be, and then the game started.

'Um, Berath?' Joel asked him.

'Yeah?'

'How do you play this?'

'Simple. Capture their flags, bring them to our base and you can't get touched.'

Joel nodded and ran off in the direction of where he thought one of the flags would be. He was fast, he had no illusions, and he was very agile compared to most normal people. He just wondered how he'd fare in a class of mutants.

Joel came to his first rival. He acted as if he was about to jump over him, and the boy acted accordingly. Joel rolled underneath the jumping figure, which cursed and shouted out to the rest of his team.

'There's a good one coming!'

Joel ran as fast as he could towards the flag, which was now in his sights. It was at the bottom of a shallow ravine, and he could see outposts around it, guarding the easiest access routes down it.

'Easy,' Joel thought as he skidded to a halt. He directed both his hands beneath him and fire erupted from his hands, slowly propelling himself upwards. He then thrust his hands out in front of him, and he cut a path through the grass and shrubbery to the bottom of the ravine.

'Hey! He's made another route!' came a voice to Joel's right. He saw a girl running full pelt at him, and he recognized her as Rogue.

'Catch me if you can!' Joel taunted before he almost dove down the ravine. Two people, Rogue one of them, were chasing him. Joel erected a fire barrier just behind him in front of his pursuers. They skidded to halt.

'Easy as pie,' Joel said mockingly before the pair appeared in front of him, Rogue without one of her gloves. Joel ducked a swipe at his face from the hand of death and he turned and ran harder than ever towards the flag.

'Foolish. They don't have anyone guarding the flag down here!'

'On the contrary,' came a voice behind him. Joel dove forwards as he heard the voice. He rolled to his feet and grabbed the flag. He turned and saw the mutant who was invisible. He looked at her and she looked at him in surprise.

'You're still invisible, aren't you,' Joel said.

The girl nodded. Joel leapt over her, clutching the flag tightly. He sprinted towards the path he'd made up the ravine.

Not many mutants were there to meet him anywhere up the slope, so he walked warily up the path towards his flag base.

When he reached the top of the path he saw four mutants coming at him from each side, and one running at him from his front. Joel felt the heat energy build in his leg muscles. They were coming closer…

And Joel released the energy. He flew straight over the mutant running at him, and the groups collided, sprawling over each other. Rogue didn't fall, and she turned and walked towards Joel.

'You're pretty good at this,' she said.

'You bet I am!' Joel said as he put a hand on Rogue's shoulder. 'Tag!'

Joel turned and ran off towards his flag base, and Rogue cursed. He touched the flag to his group's flag and they'd won the game.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

'Damn man! You're a natural!' said Berath, almost boasting that he knew one of the best Capture-the-Flag players he'd ever seen.

'Yeah, well, tell that to my biology teacher,' mumbled Joel, scratching the back of his head.

'Nah Joel. Who cares about biology!'

'Umm…me,' said Joel, getting irritated with his new acquaintance.

'Come on! If you've beaten _that_ team, and by yourself for that matter, you've got to be good!'

'What do you mean?' Joel asked, suddenly becoming intrigued.

'Well, Logan always seems to choose them together, and they always seem to win. So you're pretty damn good!'

Joel shrugged off the compliment. He walked off in the direction of his room, saying goodbye to Berath along the way, and he dumped his books in his room, before jogging off to Xavier's room.

'Professor?'

'Yes Joel?'

'I need some more clothes. I was wondering…'

'I hope I guessed your size right. I took the liberty of finding you some clothes, with the help of Scott, of course.'

'Thanks, Xavier.'

'No problem. If I had a son, your father would do the same, if he were in my financial situation.'

Joel smiled and nodded. 'So where are they?'

'They should be in your closet.' Joel said a hasty thanks and jogged back to his room.

'That kid…what a kid he is. George certainly did raise him well.'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dinner was a roasted bovine, better known as roast beef. It had been a long day for Joel, and he could compare his hunger to that of a Rwandan refugee. He found that one fork wasn't enough, and he almost scooped the food into his mouth.

Along with the scooping action increasing his eating speed, it also decreased the amount of noise he heard from Berath, who still, after 3 hours, wasn't over Joel's skills at Capture-the-Flag. Berath had seen everything Joel had done (due to his power of being able to see over long distances and through objects), and his high-pitched voice was heard over most of the voices in the dining hall.

'…And he waited for almost an eternity before jumping, and they all ran into each other…'

'Excuse me?'

'…But he was too clever for her, and he tagged her…'

'Excuse me?' Joel heard the voice along with the tap on his shoulder, and he quickly swallowed what was in his mouth before looking up at the speaker.

She was beautiful. Her skin was smooth and without a blemish. Her hair was wavy and had the colour of a cat's eyes. A deep amber.

'Uh…Joel?' Berath said. He shook his head and pushed Joel's mouth shut.

'What can we do for you?' Berath said.

'Is anyone sitting here?' she asked him.

'Nope,' Berath replied. He slapped Joel softly on the cheek a few times.

'Ugh, I give up!'

Meanwhile, on the other side of the hall, Xavier was viewing the scene with amusement. He put his hands to his head and spoke into Joel's mind.

'You're going to get nowhere like that, Joel.'

Joel shook himself of his trance. He smiled and extended his hand to the young woman.

'Joel.'

'Hi. I'm Debora.'

'Nice to meet you,' Joel said before returning to his meal.

'Joel, knife,' Xavier spoke into Joel's mind.

Joel found a knife, and began to eat in a less effective, but more impressive way.

'So how long have you been here?' Deb asked Joel.

'I got here last night.'

'Hey, cool! Me too! Well, early this morning, anyway. So what your superpower?'

'Actually, I'm not quite sure. I think that I can control heat energy, but usually in the form of fire. So I am quite strong when I use the heat energy in my muscles, but whether that's just superhuman strength or part of the power, I don't know. You?'

'Well, I'm your nemesis. I can control ice and stuff. You know?'

'Gotcha.'

Berath suddenly grabbed Joel's shoulder sharply.

'Someone's coming!' he whispered.

'Who?'

'I-I don't know, but he ain't a good guy!'

Joel stood and ran to the table Xavier was seated at.

'There's someone outside!' he said to him.

Xavier put a finger to his temple. Berath stood and ran over to Xavier.

'Who did you see?' asked Logan.

'I-I don't know. He was tall, but he was hunched, and he was moving past the security systems with ease!'

'Cyclops, code yellow,' Xavier said to Cyclops. 'Approach him carefully, act only in defence.'

'Right,' Scott said and the X-Men ran off to the underground corridors of the institute.

'Rogue, it's time,' thought-spoke Xavier into Rogue's mind. 'Good luck,' he thought-spoke to her as she made her excuses and left the table she was seated at.


	3. Chapter 3

The Torn One

Chapter Three

'Stay where you are!' Scott shouted at the intruder, one hand at his visor, ready to fire his explosive beams at whoever it was.

Wolverine, Storm, Jean Grey, and Rogue stood beside him, all ready to fight the stranger.

The stranger didn't stop his advance. He continued to walk forward at a steady pace.

'I said halt!' screamed Scott.

'No. You said stay where you are,' said the intruder before Scott was lifted from the ground and thrown out of the way like a rag-doll.

Jean, instead of talking, threw a powerful mental bolt at the intruder. A shield formed around him as the mental bolt came close, and the bolt dispersed.

Jean followed the path of Scott.

Logan followed Jean as quickly as his claws sprang from his knuckles.

Storm threw a bolt of lightning at the stranger, and the stranger seemingly turned the bolt around and directed it straight back to its source.

Rogue was the last left standing. She tried to stand up straight, but found herself hunching over in fright anyway.

'I'm going to enjoy this,' said the intruder as he drew a blade from behind his thigh.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

'They're dropping like flies!' screamed Berath.

Xavier tried to find a thought from any of the X-Men, but could only 'see' the mind of the intruder and Rogue.

'Let me help!' screamed Joel, almost crying with frustration.

'No, it's too dangerous,' mumbled Xavier, who tried to enter the mind of the enemy, only finding a mental barrier that even he couldn't pass.

'He's going to kill Rogue!' whispered Berath with horror.

'I'm off,' said Joel. He turned and ran out towards the courtyard.

He got there in time to see the stranger pull the girl's hair back with a gloved hand and pull back his knife arm.

'Rogue!' he screamed as a stream of fire shot out towards the two.

The stream of fire slammed into the attacker before the knife arm went forward. He flew backwards, but the knife cut into her anyway, cutting deeply into Rogue's hip.

Joel sprinted to the girl, and forgetting about the danger he was putting himself in, pulled up her shirt to expose the wound and placed a hand on the crying girl's wound.

He created the red light between the wound and hand, which he thought relieved pain, and he tore off a strip from the shirt and wrapped it around the wound, creating a bandage. He took off his own T-shirt to keep her warm.

He picked her up and ran with her through the cafeteria, screaming out for people to get out of the way, as Rogue tried to keep consciousness.

His arms began to tire and he nearly dropped her a few times. His muscles were burning with the weight of the girl.

'Professor! We need a doctor!'

'Take her to the surgery and I'll get the nurse.'

Joel dashed down the hallways, trying to ignore the sounds of pain and the burning in his arms and legs.

'Must…keep…going,' he strained. He almost shouted out for Rogue to shut up. He was slowing and his arms burnt with the strain of the girl.

He had to stop. He lay her on the floor and checked her pulse.

It was erratic.

He swore and grabbed her cheeks. He felt his warmth voluntarily flow into her, stimulating the flow of her blood and the consistency of her pulse.

He again picked her up and ran down the dark gray halls of the institute's basement.

His head was burning with pain, as he tried to absorb the pain she was creating.

He screamed out but persevered.

He was close.

'I'll take it from here Joel,' he heard Xavier speak into his mind. He collapsed and everything went black.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

'If it was just the fact that I was worried about her too much to notice the power or she'd learned to control it, I don't know.

'But she wasn't affecting me.

'I didn't know it until I was losing consciousness. But I'd touched her and the power wasn't triggered.'

Jean looked at the nervous boy who had just woken up after three days of unconsciousness.

'Interesting…' she mumbled. She would've loved to do some tests on his powers, but she wasn't sure that Joel would be able to handle the stress in his current state.

His powers and the potential of his powers were a mystery to her. Her experience with younger mutants gave her an insight as what their fully evolved powers would be.

Joel's powers seemed to be evolving so quickly she didn't know what he would become.

The man who'd attacked the institute had, luckily for him, survived the blast, but he was very badly burnt. So far, he had stayed in a constant state of unconsciousness, so interrogation was impossible.

Rogue was fine. The wound had healed nicely.

But she had also noticed that her power hadn't been set off when Joel touched her.

And it both scared her and gave her hope.

It scared her because she knew now that if Joel happened to be seduced by what remained of the brotherhood of mutants, he would be an unstoppable force against her.

But he could be the thing that could give her back the life she had before her powers manifested. One without fear for herself and others.

'That's about it,' said Joel quietly. 'How are you, I mean, after being thrown twenty feet across the courtyard?'

'Oh, I'm fine. He didn't hurt us at all.'

'But if he wakes up, won't he just do the same again? Won't he just throw off his bonds?'

Jean shook her head. 'Xavier has put up mental barriers in his head, to prevent any telekinetic powers.'

'Ok. So what's going to happen now?'

'I want to take some tests on you, but I think I should wait a while, so you're a bit rested, then I'll test your DNA for clues as to what your powers are. Just a few blood tests, and a light physical test.'

'Alright. Is there anything else?'

'If there's nothing else you need to tell me, then no.'

'Goodnight,' Joel said, as he rose to his feet and tiredly walked to his room.

He didn't bother removing his clothes. He fell asleep before his head hit the pillow.


	4. Chapter 4

The Torn One

Chapter Four

'…so be on guard. Walk in groups of three or more, even during day, and do not go out during the day,' said Xavier to the assembled students.

As the assembly finished, Joel slept, and dreamed of a face, a familiar face.

Laughing at him.

As if Joel had played right into a practical joke, which could see the end of all he loved.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The first period of time in which Joel was up for more than an hour was during lunch, and he decided to go and see his friends. And Deborah.

The lunch hall fell silent as he walked in. Shocked at the reaction, all Joel could do was raise a hand and say 'Hi guys. How's it going?'

The short speech was greeted by an explosive cheer and applause, as Joel spotted Berath and swiftly walked over to a seat next to him.

'Give 'em a show, Joel,' said the Professor into his head. Joel stood on the table, lifted his hands to the sky, and a firebird flew from his palms, swooping harmlessly between the students, and coming to settle in front of Deborah. She turned to look at Joel, and the bird began to eat her food.

The pair smiled at each other, and Joel sat in his seat again.

Hopefully now, Joel's life would be normal.

Not so.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Professor Xavier concentrated deeply, slowly bringing out the villain's mind. He recoiled as he felt the feelings of anger and hate from the man. The rest of the X-Men surrounded him.

'Why did you come here?' said the professor.

'To kill,' said the man, as if in a trance.

'What is your name?'

'My master calls me Pandemonium.'

'What do you call yourself?'

'Pandemonium.'

'Where were you born?'

'I do not know.'

'Who are your parents?'

'I do not know. I only follow my master.'

'Who is your master?'

'A genius.'

'What is his name?'

'That I am not permitted to tell you.'

'What's happening?' Scott mumbled to Jean.

'I think he's fighting the trance.'

'How is that possible?'

'I don't know.'

Xavier carried on through the night, only reaching dead ends and ambiguous answers, until he asked.

'You said you came here to kill. Why?'

'My master fears the one with the death touch. She is all that stands in his way to conquest. My master created a mutant to destroy her, but I became impatient.'

Silence…

'What are you?'

'I am…a creation of science. Of a genius.'

'What do you mean?'

'I have been genetically modified to be the third most powerful mutant ever.'

'Is your master the first? Or second?'

'No, but he created them both.'

'Were they created to kill the one with the death touch?'

'Yes.'

'Where are they?'

'Right under your nose Xavier.'

And for the first time, the cold eyes came alive and looked at the professor.

'And you'll never see them coming.'

Swiftly, Xavier shut down the villain's mind. As he did it as a reflex he had no control over the power, and it killed the creation.

The room empty, Xavier breathed out in relief.

'Right under your nose, Xavier,' he mumbled to himself. 'What does it mean?'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Joel woke up suddenly.

Sunlight shone into the dimly lit room, and Joel sat up and got out of bed. He dressed lightly and made his way down to the mess hall.

As he entered, he noticed there was only one other person sitting there.

Deborah.

With a plate of hot food he walked over to her and sat down beside her.

'What's doing?' Joel said.

'Not much. Yourself?'

'Me? Never felt better.'

'I liked your bird.'

'Thanks. I learnt that trick when I was back at home.'

'Where _do_ you come from?'

'Sydney.'

'I _knew _you were Australian! I was born there too!'

'Where exactly?'

'In Bondi, I think. To be honest, I'm not really sure.'

'I lived in Bondi before coming here.'

'Small world, eh?'

'Tell me about it.'

The conversation ran out of gas there. The pair looked at each other, and as their lips brushed, they simultaneously felt a sensation, like the act was wrong, like they were related in some way. They both jerked back at the same time.

'Did…you feel that too?' said Deborah.

'Yeah.'

Deborah stood and walked off without a word, just as the first people came in through the doors to the hall.

And in Joel's mind, a laugh erupted.


	5. Chapter 5

The Torn One

Chapter Five

'Professor?' asked Jean from the closed door of Xavier's quarters.

'Yes?'

'I've just noticed something about Joel.'

'And what is that?'

'He's got no family name.'

'I know.'

'Well…doesn't seem a little peculiar?'

'Yes. I have a theory why that is…'

'And?'

'Joel's father, George Anderson was a genius at school. His idea about genetics and editing them were phenomenal.'

'Do you think he created Pandemonium, and Joel, and whoever the second one is?'

'Unlikely but possible.'

'Why unlikely?'

Xavier paused. 'I guess because of how well I knew him. Possible because his talents were just that. Talents. Amazing ones too. By this time he'd be editing the human genome.'

'So have you any ideas on who the second or first are?'

'I have felt the mind of a young girl, who's uncertain of who she is and what she's becoming.'

'And what is her name?'

'Deborah…'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Joel stumbled from wall to wall along the corridor, a pain inside his head growing and growing, accompanied by the laughter and frequent flashes of a familiar face.

The pain became blinding, and Joel's vision started to blur.

'Joel…all right?' came a voice, a friendly voice.

With all his remaining energy he mouthed a single word.

'_Help.'_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Rogue looked at the shivering body falling at her knees, and she fell to her knees and supported Joel's head.

She was torn between leaving him for help and staying to aid him.

Suddenly he lay still. Rogue felt for a pulse.

None.

She began to panic.

What was happening?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_Joel stood and looked at his lifeless body._

'Scary, isn't it son?'

Joel span and came face to face with his father.

'Dad…am I dead?'

'Far from it son.'

'What is this place?'

'Good question. I think it's the place between the afterworld and our's.'

'Why am I not dead but still here?'

'Because now is the time you shall be reborn.'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

'Professor! I…'

'It's alright Rogue, let's just get him to a bed.'

'But he's…'

'Not dead. His brain is sending wild messages.'

'What's happening to him?'

'Honestly, I don't know.'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_'Reborn? I don't…'_

'You were created to kill that girl. You are the only one who can touch her without death ensuing.'

'But…'

'No buts. Now I shall kill you and you will be reborn as a killer.'

Joel felt an invisible hand tighten around his throat.

'No…'

'Yes.'

'NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!'

A fierce blast erupted from his entire body, and the hand released its grip. Joel was upon the man instantly, flame covered fists pounding into his father's face.

The visage seemed to crumble liked wet sandstone under the force of the fists, not like one would normally. As the head became a crimson dust, Joel stood, and turned to face his father again.

'I see I made you well, boy. Your sister will crumble under the weight though. I have made sure of that.'

'Who…' Joel began. But he already knew.

'If you…'

'You'll never be able to. I am an immortal. Nothing but Rogue can stop me.'

The man Joel used to call his father turned and disappeared.

And Joel woke up.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When he woke his eyes flapped open.

There was no sigh of relief, as Joel turned his head to the Professor and thought.

The Professor simply nodded and moved from the room.

Rogue embraced him. Joel, after realising what had just happened, put his arms around her too.

'I thought you were dead,' said the crying girl.

With all the things to say, Joel whispered.

'I would never die, only for you.'

And only when he'd said the words did he realize how true they were.

(Note from Aeonstrife: I'm not finished yet!)


	6. Chapter 6

The Torn One

Chapter 6

'You'll be fine, Rogue. You look beautiful.'

'You think so…'

'Yes I do,' said one of Rogue's friends. 'Now go out there and kill them.'

Nearly three months had passed, and it was the night of the farewell ceremony for the students leaving the school. A dance was on, and Joel had asked Rogue out.

Meanwhile, the man of the hour had had the same conversation with his friends, and was nervously awaiting the arrival of his date at the foot of the stairs leading into the hall where dancers were making their way onto the dance floor.

And then there she was.

Her hair fell in front of her face, the white streak outlining her face. She wore a long black dress, and a pair of gloves to match.

Joel looked up at her with awe. The music seemed to stop, and the chatter with it. All that mattered to him now was impressing this goddess.

Not a word was said. He took her arm and led them to the dance floor.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Xavier and Jean wouldn't join the party for a while yet.

For the past months, Deborah had telepathic barriers placed inside her mind to stop any attempts at her sanity.

So far it had worked. But then again it had never been tested.

Nor would it need to be.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

'They look so happy together, don't they,' said Ororo as she watched the couple of the night dancing.

'Sorry to tell you, but their still in their teens,' said Scott.

'I know, but for a first date they seem awfully comfortable around each other. You think?…'

'Not quite.'

'Why not?'

'Their too young for now.'

'Amen to that,' mumbled Logan.

Unaware of the discussion about them, Joel and Rogue talked about life and its happenings, their eyes set on each other.

And they danced into the night.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Over three years their affection grew into love, and love into marriage. It was a joyous ceremony, and all who knew bride and groom harbored no ill feelings for them. They continued to fight with the X-Men, feeling a commitment to Xavier.

Joel and Deborah had become very good friends, both fighting her curse, with the help of Xavier. No problems as of yet. Rogue still had no idea about the circumstances of Joel's 'birth'. The lives of the X-Men were peaceful.

But their world was about to be shook to its foundations.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The two figures danced around each other, fists lashing out at each other. One was a broad-chested figure, hairy, and definitely aged in some way, but as supple and agile as a 20-year-old. The other was 20, and the spark of youth gave him what the augmenting powers of the other could not.

Rogue walked, almost nervously, to the pair.

As they finished their sparring, they stood opposite each other, and bowed. Then they walked towards each other and walked in the direction of Rogue.

'Here goes nothing,' she whispered.

Joel saw her and ran to her, leaving Logan walking behind him.

'How are you honey?' said Joel before he kissed her.

'I'm good. Um…I've got something to tell you.'

'Yeah?' said Joel as Logan strolled up behind him.

An awkward silence ensued, broken by Logan.

'Ok, I can take a hint. I'm off to the showers.'

'See you later.'

When Logan was out of hearing range, Rogue whispered in Joel's ear.

'I'm pregnant.'

Joel's eyes grew wide and a smile broke out on his face. His arms near shot around his wife and drew her into an embrace.

'You're not messing with me?' said Joel.

'No.'

At that moment in time two thing were for certain. Joel was the happiest man alive, and one of the most scared.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Deborah was sleeping when it happened. It didn't creep up on her; it exploded at her mind. But the explosion came from within it, and it shattered the telepathic barriers.

At the same moment as the blast came about, she heard an evil yet familiar laugh.

And the world went black.


	7. Chapter 7

The Torn One

Chapter Seven

Joel stroked his sleeping wife's belly, imagining the fun he would have with young child. For the second time in his life, he had a responsibility. But for the first time, it was wanted. Maybe the fact that he had destroying the essence that was making him destroy his love was a good thing.

He heard the shuffle of footsteps.

'Hello?' he said out loud to whoever it was as he stepped out of bed.

As he stood, he saw who it was.

She was tall. Her hair and eyes, which were wide and glared with a craze, were amber. The figure was familiar, but not friendly, Joel knew this.

'Deborah? What's wrong?'

As a reply, she shot her hand out in front of her, and a barrage of icicles flew towards him. Joel created a wall of intense flame to stop them. They melted as they hit the fire, but they would have missed him if he hadn't put up the wall.

She began to walk towards the bed where Rogue slept peacefully. Joel walked up and grabbed her by the shoulders. She lashed a fist out at Joel, hitting him in the jaw, spinning him to the floor. He picked himself up, and went to tackle Deborah. She created a wall of ice and Joel smashed into it.

'Stop!' he cried as he banged on the ice with his fists. She continued on towards Rogue.

Joel screamed in fury and a pillar of flame erupted from him, smashing through the wall and into Deborah. When the flames dispersed, a hole in the wall leading into the hallway was left. Joel leapt onto the body and pinned its arms to the floor. But she was already dead.

The adrenaline disappeared and Joel sat beside the hole. And as the X-Men ran around the corner, he began to cry his heart out.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

'It seems to me that the curse was within her, not without. There was nothing anybody could do about it,' said Xavier.

'How is that possible?' asked Scott.

'I'd be able to tell you, but only if I could go back in time and study the human genome under the tuition of Joel's father. He was a genius. Now I know he only has a sick mind.'

Meanwhile Joel sat in the infirmary, Rogue next to him. Being ignorant of the fact that Joel was created by genetics, Rogue had made up the theory that she was mad with jealousy, and wanted Joel for herself. But she had the feeling that she was wrong.

Joel felt sick. Twice he saw the poor woman's face, lit up with murderous frenzy. Deborah had known about this, of course, and they had all been preparing for to happen, but when it did happen, nobody could believe it, least of all Joel.

'Are you all right?' mumbled Rogue.

'Are you? That's all that matters to me right now.' The words were spoken with great sincerity.

Rogue smiled sadly and nodded. She put her arms around Joel and they sat like that for a while, each in their own thoughts. One thinking about the great husband she had, and the other thinking of his lost sister.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Joel let the cool water flow over his face, cascading down his chest and legs, and pooling slightly at his feet.

Alone with his thoughts was where he wanted to be. Alone to wonder why.

He saw the face again, laughing at him. What could have driven his father to do such a thing?

He stepped out of the shower, dried, and went to bed. Rogue was out with Jean, trying to lead a normal life.

He heard the laugh again, this time much louder.

And he knew it wasn't a memory. This time he let the blackness engulf him, and he knew he would defeat his father once and for all.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

__

The scene was familiar, and so was the face.

'Why are you doing this?' said Joel.

'I will make you kill her.'

'Not now, not ever. I will beat you.'

'On the contrary, I will beat you. In about two weeks. You have the same thing inside your head as Deborah has. Or was that had? You're a murderer, Joel.'

'Why two weeks?'

'It will manifest itself then. There is nothing you can do to stop it. And not even Xavier can save you.'

Joel screamed and lunged at the man. He grasped nothing but air.

'She will die, Joel. At your hand.' And the man disappeared.

And Joel woke up. Next to him slept his wife. Joel knew, as his head rested against the pillow, he'd have to make a choice.

And he already knew what the answer was.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two days later a gunshot was heard over the peaceful chatter of birds. Logan, with his excellent sense of hearing, was the first to the source. And what he was greeted with saddened him greatly.

'Oh, Joel. Why did you do it, kid?' he said as he stroked the body's hair. He closed the open eyes and Xavier wheeled in.

'Is he dead?' said the professor. Logan simply nodded. When he saw the tape next to him on the floor, he picked it up.

'I think Rogue should see this,' said Logan.

The tape was titled 'To Those Who Knew Me.'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On the tape, Joel looked quite relaxed.

'I once heard somewhere, a phrase which I think will apply to this moment. The bird never looks back into the past, instead he flies onward into the future. Please do not be sad, as I have thought this over enough.

'When you see this, I will be dead, and not be able to answer the questions that you may have, but I hope you have none.

'Rogue, my mother was killed, and you saw this. My father though, was a genius and a madman. He was also a mutant seer. He believed that you were the only thing standing in his way to world domination. So he created Deborah and I to…murder you.

'Until that day when I returned from the brink of death, more than three years ago, I was unaware of this, but on that day I realized. I fought my father in limbo and I came back alive, with knowledge of myself. I believed that I had defeated the devil inside of me, but Deborah had a demon too, so we, Charles and I, helped her fight it, and we thought we were winning for those long years.

'But sadly, no. Whatever my father had done to her and I, it was working. Slowly, but surely it was growing inside our brains. Deborah attacked you, and I defended you. You lived, Rogue, and I think I lost some of my faith in the world.

'Not long after, my father reappeared to me, in almost the same way as he had three years ago. He told me that I would be in the same position as Deborah was not long before. But no one would be there to save you.

'I did for you, Rogue. Please, give birth to my child, and if you can, show him this tape when you feel he's ready to cope. I know that Charles, Logan, Scott, Jean, Ororo and all that know you will help you to find this child's path. They will protect him, I know, because the strength they have given me over these past years has made me make this choice.

'Do not feel sad for me. I am happy, in a way. I know I won't ever see my child, but I gave my life for his and yours.

'I love you Rogue. You are everything in my life. I hope you find the strength to carry on. Because I will never leave your side. I don't know if there is a heaven, but I will be with you, and as long as you keep me in your heart, no harm will ever come to you. Now I must say goodbye to all. I love you all, and especially you, my dove. Don't look back.

'Don't look back.'


	8. Epilogue

The Torn One

Epilogue

Dear Diary,

Today is the anniversary of his death. I gave birth to his son two days ago. A bouncing baby boy.

I called him Daniel. I don't know why, but hey, it's a name. He's inherited his father's immunity to my powers. Now the next genetic milestone will be the emergence of his powers, if he has any.

In the courtyard, Charles had a statue erected. It's a giant statue of Joel, standing as was on the day after he woke after the fight in which he risked his life to save my life, his arms to the sky, and in his hands is a bird, the stone almost coming to life as you watch it. The bird is alight, but content, being forged inside the flame of Joel's power.

Under it in an inscription. 

The Bird Never Looks Into The Past

Instead He Flies On, Into The Future

But We Remember Him, Who Fought Who He Was

To Forge A Better Future For Us All

Some would say it's grim. I quite like it.

No matter what though, I won't forget him. I don't feel sad for what he did. No regret.

He wouldn't want that.

Rogue.


End file.
